Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis officially split in July, and the most obvious sign on campus at the beginning of this semester was the lack of IUPUI signage. A giant Purdue flag now flies on the north side of the intersection of West Michigan Street and North West Street, opposite to a modified version of the old IUPUI signage, which now advertises IU Indianapolis. The flag, however, is only a small part of Purdue’s planned expansion in the city (Photo Credit: Purdue).
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There are also competing signs for several buildings that are still shared by the two universities, including the engineering building. The doors display the branding of both campuses, and the outdoor signs for the building, placed directly next to each other, have the same design, with the only difference being the school colors and name of the university listed.
A senior faculty member spoke with a reporter for the Indiana Commons last semester and said that part of the motivation for the IUPUI split included Purdue being able to have greater fiscal control over their operations at the university.
Earlier this year, Purdue revealed plans for the construction of additional housing to compliment their current space on the old IUPUI campus, which includes part of North Hall and part of the Lux on Capitol apartment complex.
The new student housing will be located at the 500 block of Indiana Avenue and will be funded by $28 million from their auxiliary funds – housing/dining. The housing will include 427 beds in 159 apartment units, and is planned to be finished by the 2026 school year. A design plan was provided by the city of Indianapolis.
Purdue has previously approved plans to construct a $187 million, 248,000-square-foot Academic Success Building on the campus to provide several new classrooms and laboratories for academic programming, nearly 500 beds for residential use and a dining area to accommodate almost 400 people. The building will be located at the intersection of West Street and Michigan Street.
According to the Purdue Exponent, Purdue President Mung Chiang suggested that students could consider taking classes at Purdue’s Indianapolis campus instead of the West Lafayette Campus in response to a question about housing issues in West Lafayette.
“You can enjoy the best of both cities,” Chiang said. “You can graduate by working while learning in Indianapolis.”
The focus on workforce needs, work-based learning and non-traditional learners is largely consistent with sentiments shared by administrators at Indiana University, including IU President Pamela Whitten, IU-Indianapolis Chancellor Latha Ramchand and IU-Indianapolis Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Eric Weldy.